68th Economic Development Advisory Committee Meeting
October 26, 200910:30 a.m.City Hall
Members Present: Chairman Rick Buckner, Mark Phillips, Ron Henderson, David Warner
Members Absent: Dean Infinger, Ron Anderson, Joseph Bagwell
Staff Present: Jeff Molinari, Assistant City Administrator
I. Call to Order – Chairman Rick Buckner
Mr. Buckner called the meeting to order at 10:33 a.m.
II. Approval of Minutes:
Mr. Henderson made a motion to approve the minutes from the July 13, 2009 meeting. Mr. Warner seconded the motion. All in favor, none opposed. Motion carried.
III. Restaurants:
Mr. Molinari stated there was one prospect in regards to restaurants and the City’s Downtown redevelopment initiative. He stated he had been communicating with all of the property owners along Central Avenue, especially Mr. Dennis Rash, who owned a parcel of land behind Fire Station One. Mr. Rash purchased the property in 2008 and was looking to build on the land and use part of the business as a retail component and the other as a bar and grill. Mr. Rash currently owns Charleston Billiards in North Charleston, and was looking to relocate his business to Goose Creek. Mr. Molinari stated although Mr. Rash was not prepared to begin construction, he had inquired about the color of the brick being used on the columns in the downtown area in order to match them to the color brick on his new building. Mr. Molinari stated the uniformity will move the City towards an architectural conformity as the City strives to create a brand, and create an identity. He stated the improvements to the downtown area would make the area a more pedestrian friendly streetscape and will be a catalyst to spur development the Economic Development Advisory Board had discussed years ago. Mr. Phillips inquired if the property would be included in the downtown redevelopment due to its location on Etiwan Avenue. Mr. Molinari stated the City’s consultants assumed the corner of Central and Etiwan Avenues belonged to the Post Office; it in fact is the property of Mr. Rash. Mr. Molinari stated Mr. Rash was a direct beneficiary of the improvements the City was making to that area. He stated as part of the improvements, the City would install a bike trail that will parallel Etiwan Avenue, and connect with Brandywine Boulevard. He stated currently there was an open ditch in this area; the City had plans to pipe the ditch, which was a significant improvement to Mr. Rash’s property. Mr. Molinari stated he had attempted to contact the proprietor of the Chic-fil-A in order to interview him and gain his perspective on the rationale of bringing his restaurant into the City of Goose Creek, as well as gaining feedback on the entire process of establishing a restaurant within the City. Mr. Molinari stated it is his understanding the owners of Saint James Place restaurant, Mr. Garey Gorey had indicated he had planned to move forward with the renovations and open the restaurant. Mr. Molinari stated there have been numerous trips to the Architectural Review Board because of changes Mr. Gorey had made to the restaurant. Mr. Molinari stated the original restaurant burnt down almost 6 (six) years ago, and the owner had ample time to rebuild. There was a brief discussion on the impact the current economy may have had on the decision to open a restaurant.
IV. Downtown Redevelopment Update:
Central Avenue Rehabilitation: Mr. Molinari stated as of the last meeting he had prepared to contact the property owners on Central Avenue in order to acquire easements to make the proposed improvements on Central Avenue. He stated Central Avenue is narrow and only had a fifty (50) foot right-of-way, in order to pipe the ditches and make other improvements; the City had requested a fifteen (15) foot temporary easement. He stated this would give the City’s contractors the right to encroach on private property, if necessary, while making the improvements. Mr. Molinari stated he and Mr. Harmon have been in contact with the nineteen (19) property owners along Central Avenue who would be directly impacted by the construction. He stated the City had been able to secure easements from sixteen (16) of the nineteen (19) property owners. He stated Bank of America had requested a detailed construction schedule before they signed off on the easements, which was still being developed by the contractors. Mr. Molinari stated the work on Central Avenue will begin on the Highway 52 side of Central Avenue, allowing the contractors time to fulfill the request. Mr. Molinari stated there is a vacant parcel in Shannon Park Shopping Center with six (6) owners that all would have had to sign off on the temporary easements; the property management company had assisted with contacting the owners and acquiring the necessary signatures. Mr. Molinari stated the third property owner, while supportive of the project, had requested additional information regarding the impact the sidewalk had on his signage before he allowed temporary easements. Mr. Molinari states the contractor had agreed to stake out the proposed sidewalk in order to alleviate any concerns the owner had. He stated the City had issued a notice to proceed to the contractor on October 12, 2009. He stated there were lingering issues with some of the utilities, but the goal was to break ground the next week and see tangible changes to the area. Mr. Molinari stated the South Carolina Department of Transportation had issued an Encroachment permit for the work on Central Avenue.
Highway 52 Improvements: Mr. Molinari stated CSX is dragging their feet in regards to the improvements along Highway 52. He stated CSX would like to assess the City a $244,000.00 license fee for the use of their right-of-way. Mr. Molinari stated this fee is absurd, since there is no mention of the fee in the permit requirements. He stated CSX is trying to make attaining a permit as difficult as possible in an attempt to get the City to back off of the request. He stated he and Mr. Harmon may have to make another trip to CSX headquarters in Jacksonville, to discuss the problems. Mr. Phillips inquired what CSX is requesting the City back off on, since the City had already changed the plans for the hiker/biker trail or bike trail. Mr. Molinari stated CSX had approved the drainage improvements, but is not comfortable with the streetscape improvements. Mr. Phillips inquired what the justification is for asking for the license fees, Mr. Molinari stated he had not received any break down of the charges or any justification for the $244,000.00 fee. Mr. Buckner inquired if the City had contacted the Public Service Commission regarding the fees and stated if the City would communicate with the Public Service Commission what their intentions are, it may get back to the railroad and the railroad may be more inclined to comply. He stated since the Public Service Commission is the governing body of the railroad, filing a petition with the Public Service Commission would certainly get the attention of CSX. Mr. Phillips inquired if there was an update on the vacant property located on Highway 52 at Highway 176, the real estate sign on that property indicates a sale is pending. Mr. Molinari stated he would look into any activity there.
V. Comprehensive Plan Update:
Mr. Molinari stated the City is in the process of updating the Comprehensive Plan. He stated Planning Director, Daniel Ben-Yisreal had approved the committee on the consulting project and had assembled a steering committee on which Mr. Buckner is a representative. He stated within the last six months, there had been several public input meetings, reviews and drafts for three of the elements: Population, Housing, and Natural Resources. Mr. Molinari stated Mayor Heitzler presented the cultural resources element to the committee. Mr. Molinari stated he presented an overview on economic development, tracing the evolution of the City from its inception to the initial issues with infrastructure, through the election of Mayor Heitzler, putting together of a professional staff, getting the City’s finances in order, development of Crowfield Corporate Center, and emerging to the commercial sector as well as where the City was with the downtown redevelopment project. He stated the City created a survey earlier in the year, which was distributed to citizens and was made available online. He stated the City collected approximately one thousand responses; the COG had the raw data and was in the process of interpreting the information and drawing conclusions from the data. Mr. Molinari stated the steering committee was coming together and they had good representation on the commission. Mr. Buckner stated the committee was making progress and appears to be positive. Mr. Molinari stated one of the members, Rob Cason, was no longer with the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments and Jessica Gillis had taken over his position. He stated Ms. Gillis had been engaged in the process from the beginning, and he did not anticipate much difficulty in the transition. Mr. Buckner stated the committee needed to focus on the purpose of the Strategic Planning process and the requirements from the State of South Carolina. Mr. Molinari stated the City is required to update the Comprehensive Plan every ten (10) years, and the nine (9) elements of the Comprehensive Plan have to be updated every five (5) years. He stated the initial Comprehensive Plan was produced by the City Planner, but the City was looking to capture the history of Goose Creek as well as a vision for where the City is going for the next update. Mr. Phillips inquired when the updates were required to be completed, Mr. Molinari stated the City is on an eighteen (18) month plan, and expects the updated Comprehensive Plan would be brought before City Council in October or November 2010.
VI. Chairman’s Time: H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu Update):
Mr. Buckner inquired how the H1N1 Flu virus had impacted the City of Goose Creek. Mr. Molinari stated there had not been any outbreaks of the virus among the residents of the City of Goose Creek, and the City as an organization had taken proactive steps to address concerns with the H1N1 virus. He stated the City Administrator requested each department manager to develop a contingency plan for their department in the event that a significant number of employees were to contract the virus. He stated the police department had also facilitated mandatory training for all City employees on ways to prevent and treat the spread of the virus. He stated the City had also agreed to pay for or reimburse each employee who had chosen to receive a seasonal flu vaccination and the response had been very positive. Mr. Buckner stated he had concerns with the attendance of the committee meetings. He inquired if anyone had suggestions on how to improve the attendance. The suggestion was made to change the day and times of the meeting to better accommodate the members’ schedules. Mr. Buckner suggested the members of the committee complete a survey to determine if there were other issues or suggestions on how to improve attendance. There was a brief discussion on the option of using a virtual meeting system, and if the cost and legality of using such a system would benefit the committee. Mr. Molinari stated he would gather more information regarding these options as well as assemble a questionnaire for the members of the committee. Mr. Buckner inquired if there had been a change with the Alliance and the way the City related to the Alliance. Mr. Molinari stated he had been invited to the monthly Allies Meeting and the City was still considered an economic development ally, just not a voting member. He stated other than not having a designated representative at the meetings, there had not been a significant change. Mr. Molinari stated the new plan had been implemented as of June 1, 2009 and Mr. Buckner’s term on the board had expired as of June 30th. Mr. Buckner stated the City was the lone descending vote whether or not to include the cities in Berkeley County without paying $10,000.00 more to be represented as a City. He stated if the City wanted to pay $10,000.00, they could attain a membership. Mr. Phillips stated the City had been involved for thirteen (13) years, and suddenly the City was not represented at the table. Mr. Buckner stated that even when the City was at the table, there were economic development announcements that were shared with the members of the board and other announcements were not. Mr. Phillips stated the perception was that the City is not participating or willing to commit $10,000.00 and not having a membership may have sent the wrong message. He stated that although the City was represented by Berkeley County, there were other municipalities that had memberships even though they were represented by their county. He stated the City had a lot to gain with economic development going on in the region. Mr. Buckner stated the $10,000.00 membership level allowed for a lunch and to listen to what was being said. In order to participate at an Executive level, memberships would cost $50,000.00, and there were other levels that cost various amounts of money. Mr. Buckner stated this was a financially driven situation which was perplexing because he had been a member of various committees and had input on the way the Alliance had formed itself. Mr. Buckner stated he was informed he would have the opportunity to voice his concerns about the way the bylaws had been suggested to be approved at the time. He stated although he had requested the opportunity to address the issues, he had not been given the opportunity and as a result, the City voted against the bylaws as presented. He stated Summerville, Mt. Pleasant, and Charleston may not have been aware that they had paid the additional $10,000.00 to become members. Mr. Phillips stated that although the City voted against the bylaws, they would still be able to join if the money was paid. Mr. Molinari stated it became a question of the return on the investment, what the City gained by paying the $10,000.00 to become members of the Alliance. Mr. Buckner stated the members that had paid $50,000.00 had more influence on the executive committee, and they drove things differently than members on the outer shell committees. Mr. Phillips stated he felt as if the City was the lone person in the region that was not a willing participant in the overall scheme and it looked bad. He stated he did not have a problem with voting against the bylaws and expressing concern with the process, but he felt as if the City needed to be on equal footing with the other municipalities. There was brief discussion between Mr. Molinari and members of the board regarding the changes to the Alliance bylaws.
VII. Adjournment:
Hearing nothing further, Mr. Buckner asked for a motion to adjourn. Mr. Phillips made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Warner seconded the motion. All in favor, none opposed. Meeting adjourned at 11:43a.m.
Minutes approved and adopted: _________________________________
Date: January 11, 2010
Rick Buckner, Chairman
